THINGS TO COME

New Zealand Listener, Volume 5, Issue 117, 19 September 1941, Page 3

THINGS TO COME

A Run Through The Programmes

the common cause of the Whigs on the other side of the Atlantic, and on this. ‘’Tis Liberty to liberty engaged,’ that they will defend themselves, their families, and their country. In this great cause they are immoveably allied; it is the alliance of God and nature-immut-able, eternal-fixed as the firmament of heaven, ... I trust it is.obvious to your Lordships, that all attempts to impose servitude upon such men, to establish despotism over such a mighty nation must be vain, must be fatal." These words were spoken by Pitt the Elder, the Great Commoner, urging the liberal minds in England to fight against what he believed to be the encroachments of a tyranny, to stop the war with America. To-day, the differences between the two nations have been settled, but if Chatham were alive his thoughts would be just as pointed and as relevent, though in a different sense, as they were in 1775. The career of Chatham as a "Great Parliamentarian" will be the subject of a BBC programme from 1YA, Sunday next, at 3.52. | For Fishermen With, as usual, an eye to topicality, Professor T. D. Adams has selected for his session on September 26-the last Friday before the opening of the new angling season-" Readings on Fishing." We do not know in how much the readings will be emotion recollected in tranquillity, how much emotion anticipated. we O maintain this principle is

All men are not anglers for, as Walton pointed out, one must be born so, but it would be unfortunate if the generality of mankind could not share vicariously in the pleasures of those who, to quote Walton again, "with the expense of a little money, have eat and drunk, and laughed, and angled, and sung, and slept securely; and rose next day and cast away care, and sung, and laughed, and angled again; which are blessings rich men cannot purchase with all their money." " Surprise" Symphony Haydn’s Symphony No. 94 in G Major is one of his best known works, chiefly because of the alleged "surprise" which occurs in the Second Movement. The Andante, based on a very simple melody, begins softly, is repeated even more

softly, then suddenly, at the sixteenth bar, it culminates in an unexpected crash from the whole orchestra. The reason is that Haydn had discovered the English habit of dining and wining heartily before attending a concert and of then’ dozing off the effects to the strains of soft music. So he perpetrated his little joke to make a somnolent audience of the English nobility take notice of his symphony. Listen to 3YA on Wednesday, September 24, at 8.26 p.m. and see if the music still retains any of its original effect. If possible, have a good dinner first. Sweep To Swing! It is easy to foresee a considerable speeding up and at the same time a lightening of household tasks as the result of the morning session of swing music which the ZB stations are broadcasting under the title of Rhapsody in Rhythm. We were treated to an advance playing of it the other day, and we can vouch for the fact that it is a bright session, crammed to the gunwales with swingy music played by a lively combination of players masquerading under the title of "Charles W. Hemp and the Rhythm Rascals," Mr. Hemp himself is a whimsical character who plays the piano and croons, and although his is a type of singing which would probably distress Dr, Lyon, most listeners will find it pleasant enough. The songs which Mr. Hemp and his rascals play and sing are established favourites with swing fans, numbers such as Nagasaki," "When Did You Leave Heaven?" and "Did I Remember?" As far as we know, it js the first time housewives have had the opportunity of doing their chores to swing

time, and it will be interesting to observe the effect. Rhapsody in Rhythm started on Monday, September 15, and will play from all stations at ten o’clock every Monday morning. Spring is Here Weather or no weather, spring is here. Josephine Clare will point that out from 3ZR on Monday next, and if anyone wants any further confirmation they can note that the A.C.E. propose to give some spring-cleaning hints from 4YA on Friday week. For ourselves, we can see no reason why spring should be picked as the season for the annual domestic blitz-after all, the house is less likely to be used in the summer than in the winter, and autumn cleaning would seem more logical — but our views are not likely to make much impression upon immemorial tradition, and if the A.C.E.’s hints or Josephine Clare’s talk can in any way mitigate our misery, save us from breakfasting off the top of the piano, or washing in the pudding basin in the backyard, they will have earned another instalment of our eternal gratitude. Marooned With a Madman In his first book, "Madman’s Island," Ion L. Idriess, the Australian author, described his adventures as a voluntary castaway on a lonely coral isle with a solitary companion, Charlie, whom he discovered to be subject to fits of insanity. Their search for tin was unsuccessful, the month which they had intended to stay lengthened into six, and Charlie became so uncontrollable that

the two men took to living on opposite. ends of the island -truly a Gilbertian situation. Eventually Idriess was rescued by Japanese pearl-fishers, but Charlie elected to remain, The book is being read by Ellis Price, Australia’s so-called "Prince of Storytellers," from 2YA on Thursday evenings at 8.6. Recognition at Last In the uproar which customarily attends the published differences between the musical classicists or purists and.the Fatswallerites, one is tempted to forget that neither camp has any right to the battle cry " Who is not with us is against us." That at least, is what we think, and on behalf of all those parties of the musical Centre who, like ourselves, flinch equally from the hard road of classicism and the primrose pathway which leads to Tin Pan Alley. and the

Everlasting Bonfire, we welcome the session, "Music for the Middle Brow," which 3YA will present at 12.15 p.m. on Sunday next. It is a welcome acknowledgment of the fact that where there are two extremities there must be a middle between them, and is also a worthy example of the British Spirit of Compromise. Liver and Heart Listeners to Station 2ZB are receiving yet another portion of pleasantly predigested history in the new Cavalcade of Drama series which deals with the life of Napoleon Bonaparte. As usual in this form of historical drama, the story is more concerned with the private life of the Corsican ogre than with his cam« paigns and his great material conquests, And who can deny that it may give just as true a perspective of history as the orthodox text books? For in all probability, the condition of Napoleon’s liver, and in consequence the course of European history, was influenced in no small degree by what he ate. Certainly history has been affected by his affairs of the heart. And there is also a thought in the opinion expressed a little while ago that the history of this present disturbed age has been largely conditioned by the fact that Herr Hitler is a vegetarian. However, what we want to emphasise is that people who wish to learn history the pleasant way cannot do better than follow up Napoleon Bonaparte from 2ZB every Monday, Wednesday and Thursday, at 3.30 p.m. pounds